Heir to the Decepticon Throne
by metallicgirl42
Summary: Set in G1. This is the story of the birth of Megatron and Soundwave's sparkling. Rated "M" for graphic birth and "controversial" themes.
1. Chapter 1

**SUMMARY: This is a "male pregnancy" delivery scene, by Megatron. I know it might seem weird with Megatron as uke/carrier, but this strangely just popped into my mind about a week ago and after sitting on the idea for a little I decided to write it. As I'm sure you're wondering, the sire of the sparkling is Soundwave…who of course loves children. Word of warning: If you're not into this stuff, you should probably go and read something else.**

…

It was getting lonely, here all alone at base, and Megatron's cramps were killing him again. Well…not so much that it was disabling, really, but he still felt like scrap. Even though in reality he'd only been carrying this sparkling for nine months, it felt like years since he'd felt truly comfortable. In the past month he had been getting these horrible abdominal cramps, although they usually went away (or were at least lessened) by sleep or a hot bubble bath. Of course, they weren't technically _cramps_; they were inefficient, rather deceiving "practice contractions", and today, they seemed to be even more annoying than usual.

Right now, Megatron was lying on his back (which was strained from the sparkling) and trying to get into a more comfortable position. After all this time, he wasn't scared of having a sparkling—after all, it WAS a natural phenomenon (a "miracle", some would say, but perhaps that was too cheesy) and countless carriers had done it before him. But that didn't mean he had to LIKE it. After all this time, he just wanted it over with. Unfortunately, though, it wasn't, and the cramps were still bothering him greatly. So he locked the door to his suite, crossed to the self-maintenance room off his giant bedroom, and started to fill the tub with hot water. Surely this would be just what the medic ordered, and he could go back to watching TV.

As he filled the tub, Megatron wondered why having a sparkling had to be so…restricting. Yes, he knew that having sparklings was a very rewarding experience, but sometimes he wished it was rewarding someone else. It didn't allow him to fight and oversee the destruction of the accursed Autobots, for one thing. Not only did he fear for the sparkling's health and his own, he feared that the Autobots would try and take his sparkling. Not only _that_, but maybe Megatron himself would be easier to defeat, too. Megatron had pictured it in his mind, many times:

Megatron (swinging his mace): It's all over, Prime!

Optimus (running): OW OW I HATE YOU MEGATRON OW OW!

Megatron (suddenly doubling over in pain): OW! HELP!

Optimus: Look, the sparkling's coming! Let's capture it and turn it into an Autobot, and then we can kill Megatron while he's still weak!

Other Autobots (together): Okay!

Well, it wasn't going to go down like that. No WAY. Megatron could get right back out on the playing field once the sparkling was born, and he wouldn't even _need _any time to recover. Leaning on the side of the bathtub, Megatron growled and grabbed his abdominal area as another little cramp seized him. OW OW OW OW—ahh…his grip relaxed as the stinging, clenching feeling started to wane. This nice bath would probably help. Usually, warm water did the trick.

But just as Megatron reached for some bubble soap, he lost his footing, mostly due to the enormous weight on his blast chamber, and hit the side of the tub, _hard_. Megatron thought at first that some of the water from the bath had just been spilled onto his feet somehow—or, well, all over his lower body. But it was much stickier than normal water should be, and he was shocked to see that it was tinged with his own raw energon. It was probably then that he realized his energon had broken and he'd gone into labor.

Megatron let out a nasty curse and pressed his fingers to his temples, wondering how he hadn't seen this coming. Most likely, he had already been in labor for hours and just hadn't been able to distinguish it from his regular "cramps", the ones he'd been getting all month. It was about nine or ten more minutes before he felt the next pain. It was a little worse than the last one, but Megatron figured that was all in his head. Obviously, the pain had only increased because he had just realized his predicament. All he had to do was, um, have the sparkling, right? It couldn't be that hard. After all, he could still walk and talk. Maybe it would be good to get into the bath anyway.

As soon as he was soaking in the bath, waiting for and dreading another contraction at the same time, Megatron wondered exactly what he was going to do. What did he _think _he was going to do?! It was different for the Autobots—they had Ratchet, Perceptor, Wheeljack, and even that grease monkey Spark Plug to help with any medical conditions. It was totally different for Decepticons. Their health care plan was basically, don't get hurt…and if you do, die quickly.

At least nobody was home right now. Megatron didn't want anyone to see him in such a vulnerable situation, helpless to control any pain he was going through, even though right now he could honestly say he'd been through worse, in the gladiator pits alone. The other Decepticons were all off fighting Autobots or raiding an oil field or something. For all intents and purposes, Megatron didn't know, and he wasn't sure if he cared, either. For the third trimester, Megatron had to break down and put Soundwave in charge of the Decepticons (not Starscream, because he sure as slag couldn't handle it), because all he could think of was his aching back and cramps and angry feelings and cravings for peoplefood (yes, it was weird, especially with the steak fat) and he didn't have the time OR the energy for military strategy. All he wanted to do was get some REST and have everybody JUST GO AWAY! OKAY?!

Megatron shook his head and tried to calm himself down. It didn't matter now; it was mid-afternoon, so by night or tomorrow morning the sparkling would be here and Megatron could get back in control. Unfortunately, one of Skywarp's new interests—some New Age human relaxation thing called "yoga"—popped into his brain. Several times, Skywarp had tried to get him to do "pregnant yoga", which earned the purple Seeker some major injuries. Skywarp was really bad at yoga, but he thought it was fun. Megatron thought it wouldn't be the most relaxing thing for him right now, because it involved twisting your body into all these weird acrobatic positions and he wasn't really all that flexible to begin with. Also he was about to give birth…

Trying to distract himself, he turned on the TV mounted above his bathtub and tried to focus on the show, but he couldn't. As several hours passed, his contractions (which had previously been regularly spaced, mild annoyances) were making themselves known, and they didn't seem so far apart now. No matter how much he tried to distance his mind, Megatron found himself crying out in pain and waiting for the sharp pain to pass. (It was probably only around thirty seconds, but it felt more like thirty minutes).

By the time the hour was up, Megatron found himself leaning exhaustedly against the bathroom wall, panting, the TV still blaring who knows what and the faucet still running. After all, he had pictured himself having his sparkling in bed, not in the bathtub. Another filthy word escaped his mouth and was followed by another, but then another pain came and he found that he was no longer able to even speak through it. As he sunk to the floor, he wondered why so much of the pain was in his back, as well as the rest of his body, and what he was going to do. Was this going to get worse? Obviously, he hoped the answer to _that _question was "no".

Only a few minutes later, Megatron heard the sound of the other Decepticons coming home. Several of them were calling for him; he waited the next contraction through, trying to suppress a howl of discomfort, and then called out hoarsely, "I'm BUSY! If anyone dares to enter my suite, he will suffer a painful, gruesome—arrgghhh!"

Okay, maybe right now the only one suffering anything painful and gruesome was Megatron himself. But they didn't need to know that. As their leader's speech was cut off again, some of the other Decepticons were concerned, but they understood the message—stay away at all costs.

"What's Megatron _doing _in there?" Starscream whispered.

"I bet he's trying out yoga," Skywarp said confidently. "It can be a little hard at first."

"Of _course _he's not doing yoga," Thundercracker said scornfully.

"Then what's he doing?" Skywarp challenged.

"This is POINTLESS!" said Starscream. "Come on, let's see what he's _really _up to."

"If you want to die," said Thundercracker.

Starscream decided he didn't want to risk his own hide, so he stayed put. Meanwhile, the others were standing there as well, not really knowing what they should do.

Now that the other Decepticons were home, Megatron was trying to think about how he should be quiet so nobody would come in and bother him, but it was getting SO BAD…when he went into another contraction, it seemed like it would _never _stop. That one had to have been at least a minute long. So when would the sparkling come?!

One hour later, even Megatron couldn't take it anymore; flat on his back under his bedsheets, trying to ignore this pain, struggling to be quiet so as not to draw attention to himself, straining to push the sparkling out, but he didn't know how. There was certainly no "urge"…yet. Why hadn't anyone _told _him what this was like?

Only a few minutes later, Megatron found himself desperately opening his com. link and paging his most trusted advisor—the sire of the sparkling.

"Soundwave! Acknowledge!" he shouted into the com. link.

"Yes, Lord Megatron?" Soundwave responded quickly. The other Decepticons exchanged questioning looks.

"I-I will unlock m-my door," Megatron stammered, not without some difficulty. "Come in and bring—bring no one but yourself."

"As you command, Lord Megatron," said Soundwave, and he hung up. Megatron struggled out of bed, across the room, and managed to reach the door, somehow unlocking it just in time for Soundwave's arrival.

In under a minute, Megatron was laying on his side in his bed, with Soundwave telling him to breathe and relax repeatedly, Frenzy going to clean up the bathroom as well as get some hot water, and Rumble fetching fresh towels. Megatron found that he felt better with Soundwave there; it was good to have someone actually there with him when pain filled his body. But it didn't make the pain go away. Soon enough, Rumble had returned with the towels.

"Thank—thank you," said Megatron, meaning Soundwave _and _his minicons.

"It is an honor," Soundwave replied, putting towels onto the bed and the floor.

"You should walk around a little, boss," Rumble piped up. "Hate seein' ya like this, y'know?"

"I-I guess," Megatron mumbled, and Soundwave helped him off the bed. It did feel kind of good to walk, but every three minutes or so he would get hit by a contraction—like a plane crashing into a mountain—and he would have to lean against the wall or the bed or Soundwave, gnashing his teeth, yelling in pain.

When Megatron was around the self-maintenance room, he collapsed onto the floor and leaned against the wall, shivering and shaking a little, still trying not to let out more noise than he had to—he was still wondering what the other Decepticons were thinking. Soundwave offered one hand and Megatron squeezed it a little too hard, threatening to break it or even pull it off. Soundwave gently rubbed Megatron's shoulder with his other hand, and Rumble brought some towels over to the area.

Soundwave couldn't help but remember his own many birthing experiences when he watched someone doing it for the first time. Everything had been easier on him with his second minicon, and every other one after that, but he still knew what Megatron was going through. Rumble and Frenzy were darting worriedly around Megatron; Soundwave let the gray mech squeeze his hand even tighter.

"It might help to remember that contractions are only good for you," Soundwave told Megatron earnestly.

"How are they _GOOD_?!" Megatron cried, moments before another one came.

"They get the sparkling out," said Soundwave.

_Oh wait_. _I forgot about that_. Megatron had known this before. It had slipped his mind until now, but contractions were there for an important reason, not just to see how much punishment he could take.

"I-I know," Megatron mumbled. "And he's here for a reason, too."

Megatron and Soundwave's sparkling had not been an accident. They had actually had this sparkling on purpose, the main reason being Megatron's bloodline, or his pedigree. More and more often, he stayed up at night in his suite, thinking that he would have to retire eventually, and then who would take over? That's right—Starscream. But then Megatron realized that if he had a son (or even a daughter, although having a femme taking control was still slightly unconventional), his own offspring would be next in line for the throne instead. Energon was thicker than water, so when someone had to inherit Megatron's throne, there was nobody better than his own child.

Initially, Megatron wanted to be the one to sire the sparkling, but then Soundwave started telling him about how he felt closer to his minicons than ever by being their carrier, and he would definitely do it all over again, even though he'd given birth, like, what, four or five times now? Six? And hadn't Laserbeak and Buzzsaw hatched from eggs? So that meant Soundwave could lay eggs? Well, whatever. Soundwave made childbirth out to be bearable, even preferable—because that was how he saw it. In fact, he had been _so _convincing that Megatron decided to have _this _sparkling himself.

Now, Megatron was beginning to regret this decision. Of course, Soundwave hadn't been trying to trick him into being the one in pain—Soundwave felt like giving birth was a rewarding experience and…well, maybe he thought Megatron would agree with him. But Megatron didn't agree with him. Not only was he in pain, but he didn't know what his body was even _doing_. Pain was all over his abdomen, legs and especially his back for some reason—and all he could do was sit there and take it.

As he groaned and rubbed his back, Megatron heard Soundwave order Rumble to give Megatron a back massage. When Megatron started to protest, Soundwave said it would help with the pain. _But what does he know_? Megatron thought bitterly. _Last time I checked_, _I was the one having the sparkling_, _not him_! Megatron had forgotten that Soundwave had gone through this many times before so he would know quite well.

"W-What pain?!" Megatron growled, shoving Rumble aside. No one was permitted to touch him. Besides, he had the feeling Soundwave was reading his mind again, especially because he actually was feeling a lot of pain in his lower back right now. As a general rule, Soundwave was forbidden to read Megatron's mind, but maybe he was just trying to help.

Actually, though, Soundwave hadn't been reading Megatron's mind so much as he'd been simply observing his body language. The old mech insisted he was feeling great, but Soundwave knew he was full of slag, not only because almost all carriers felt pain at one point or another, but also from the way he clenched his teeth, how he arched his back and quietly groaned every time he felt pain, which was by now every second.

"Soundwave, when…" Megatron started to ask, but again, his contractions interrupted him. So the word "when" came out more like "wheeeeaaaaaAAAAHHHHH!" To be honest, Megatron mainly wished he could talk so he could shout profanities, but why was it that he couldn't manage to get _any _words out?

Soundwave looked at Megatron carefully and then replied, "Pushing does not begin until dilation is complete. Current dilation: 80 percent."

"So when will it be 100 percent?" Megatron asked.

"Question cannot be answered with certainty," said Soundwave.

"In other words…you have NO IDEA when this will be over?!" Megatron hollered.

Soundwave shook his head, no.

_Well_, _you can at least stop reading my mind_! Megatron thought as forcefully as possible. This time, he _knew _Soundwave had been reading his mind, because he had been planning to ask when he could push the sparkling out.

Soundwave ignored this—maybe he had finished his mind-reading for now—and, in all seriousness, moved his steady gaze from Megatron's face, to his hand (which had been broken by Megatron a long time ago by now—he would need to get a new one), to the floor and between his Master's legs. Still no sparkling, of course; all that was there were some dirty towels, quite a bit of lubricant and a little raw energon. They did have hot water, but since Frenzy had fetched the water long ago, it was now more like room-temperature water.

By the time he heard Soundwave ordering Rumble and Frenzy to get more hot water and clean towels, Megatron felt nauseous and a little dazed. Even though he never thought it could happen, he was starting to lose faith in himself. For one thing, how could a sparkling's frame, even if it was comparably small, be pushed _out _of anyone? No wonder it hurt! What kind of way to reproduce was this? Slag it, he'd love to talk to the geniuses who designed him this way. Sadists!

Megatron had never had such an excruciating experience, and that was saying something, for him. Truth be told, he had been expecting this to be easy, or at least only moderately difficult. Contrary to what he had previously thought, even those with a high pain tolerance can feel labor pain…intensely. Even his vision was blurred. It was _much _worse than anything he'd experienced in the gladiator pits of Kaon. Come to think of it, that was strange. During his time as a gladiator, he'd defeated many formidable opponents with little pain. And yet this time he was losing…to a sparkling.


	2. Chapter 2

"I should have let Starscream take over," Megatron was complaining. "I don't want a sparkling _this _much!"

"This is the most intense part," said Soundwave, completely ignoring this, even though Megatron could barely hear what he was saying. "It passes through the top of the hips—" (he gestured to his pelvic area) "and enters the birth canal."

"Watch out," Rumble added. "I hear that first push is a doozy."

"NO, not pushing," Megatron moaned.

"It's not that bad," Soundwave told him.

"You lie!" Megatron snapped.

"I-I apologize, Lord Megatron," said Soundwave, putting his head down. Actually, he wasn't lying; in fact, pushing was almost good, compared to the rest. But then again, who was he to say, especially when addressing someone who wasn't in his right mind?

Before, whenever he felt down, Megatron would always picture having a son who looked a lot like him, maybe a little like Soundwave, too, and training him to fight, and when he retired he could be the one to place the crown on his son's head, confident that he had raised someone worthy of it. Of course, he'd had plenty of time to think about things like these—his times alone at base when everybody else was out could get quite boring. But all that changed when everybody got back home. When his troops came back defeated, the only thing Megatron could think about was how the Decepticons would've won, had he been there, and more than a few comrades would receive a beating.

Sometimes he'd get a little _too _violent, and they ended up having to take his cannon away for an hour or two before he calmed down. It was still fresh in his mind—being held down while somebody else (usually an unusually gleeful Starscream) pried the cannon off his arm, then being made to sit on the couch, sulking, like a sparkling during a time-out.

"NO ONE does that to me!" Megatron would be yelling as Starscream put the cannon somewhere out-of-reach, trying to break free from the two Decepticons who were holding him down because one was hardly enough.

And the movement, now that was annoying. It wasn't just kicking, either; he could feel it practicing its transforming. Inside of him. That didn't come as a surprise, because transforming was part of a sparkling's programming, something that didn't need to be taught, kind of like breathing, or flying if it was a Seekerling. The only problem was, that Megatron couldn't tell what his sparkling was going to transform _into_.

"FRAGGIT!" Megatron was startled out of his thoughts by a particularly violent contraction, and since he was more than a little out-of-it, he hollered, "SOUNDWAVE! MAKE IT STOP! NOW!"

"Command is out of my control," Soundwave said shortly.

"Come on, boss, we believe in ya!" said Rumble, bending down and putting both hands on Megatron's forehead, but Megatron swatted him off.

"THERE MUST BE SOMETHING YOU CAN DO!" Megatron shouted, kicking Soundwave in the chest repeatedly.

"Suggestion: change position?" said Soundwave.

"What in the Pit does tha—NYAAA!" Megatron was shouting again, but Soundwave calmly dipped one of the clean towels in their lukewarm water, then placed it across Megatron's forehead. It helped a bit, and Megatron was glad for the gentle gesture. Aw…he really did care.

"Try hands-and-knees," Soundwave explained. "It is meant to take pressure off of the lower back."

"That's—that's ridiculous." Megatron managed to force these words out, but he was actually glad to hear that something might soothe his back labor even a little bit. So even though he felt a little awkward, he let Soundwave help him up to a crawling-like stance. It was amazing how much relief it offered—things still weren't peachy, but it felt like a great burden had been lifted off of his back, which had been hurting the most.

Megatron's wrists soon began to ache as his arms were the only thing holding his heavy front body up. So he set his chest on the ground and lay his arms flat while Soundwave told him he was 100 percent dilated.

_That_'_s not really what I_'_m focusing on right now_, thought Megatron. _But that_'_s great_…_I guess_…

Wha…? Oh Primus, what was _that_? HIGH pressure, very low in the hips! Or…somewhere around the hips. It was hard to tell, but the sensation made Megatron sit up again and hold onto Soundwave's arm, letting out a little grunt-whine at the new sensation.

Soundwave was still watching Megatron intently, still figuring out how he could—and would—help, so he supported Megatron's back with his good hand and placed the wet towel on his forehead again. It was confusing because the contractions were just a little farther apart now, and they felt…different, like they were bringing an insane amount of pressure rather than pain. It felt as if something rather heavy was on top of him. Cybertron, for instance.

Naturally, Megatron felt that he should stop such a feeling, but the more he fought it, the more it hurt, and it was eventually so overwhelming that it was like a gnat trying to stop a freight train. So he ended up giving in. After much struggle, he realized that the only way he would _ever _get through this would be if he listened to his body. And right now, his body was telling him to push. FINALLY.

Megatron groaned again, not knowing if he should hold back or just go for it; his face felt burning hot, and his fangs were involuntarily clenched together. "Soundwave, I-I've gotta push…I think…"

Soundwave nodded; Megatron was fully dilated and Soundwave was beginning to pick up a faint new energy signal. Not many others would've been able to, but Soundwave was capable of picking up any kind of signal he wanted. As soon as the new Decepticon formed his own life signal, Soundwave could register it. Good, because this could help him determine the health of the sparkling during the birth. Soundwave told Megatron to push with all his strength when he needed to—which would probably be on the next contraction…

Megatron didn't know what to expect—Soundwave had tried, but he found it hard to describe this to anyone who hadn't been through it themselves. But the warlord gasped at the sensation of the first push, adjusting his hips against the wall without knowing it. It was just a little tug but…tempting. Like he needed to do it again.

"Do NOT hold back, Lord Megatron," Soundwave reminded him.

Megatron had heard all those horror stories about pushing. Soundwave swore it felt good, but Megatron assumed he was lying. Now, that wasn't fair. There was no way Soundwave would lie to him! And, well, this wasn't so bad, it was almost…exhilarating at times.

It was hard work. But at least he was (somewhat) in control of his body now.

What he didn't know was that he was shouting a lot of incomprehensible words, mixed in with Cybertronian profanity. But although he wouldn't be able to explain it later on, they were HAPPY swear words.

"PUSH! PUSH! PUSH!" Rumble and Frenzy were chanting.

"If you feel like doing something…do it," Soundwave told him. Even without reading anybody's mind, the blue mech knew that Megatron was now experiencing the "pushy feeling" more than ever, and that he was actually taking it just fine. After all, he was very strong physically and could probably pump their sparkling out with little difficulty. The sensation was coming rather naturally. Soundwave had Megatron sit up straight then leaned him against the wall; he risked his other hand being broken too and let Megatron squeeze it, every so often letting him know how good a job he was doing. As for Megatron, he let himself get lost in this feeling, a welcome change from active labor. Now even his back wasn't hurting as much.

"C'mon, you can do it!" said Rumble.

"Yeah, a strong mech like you can do anything!" Frenzy added.

Listening to Megatron's loud grunting noises combined with his filthy mouth for almost an hour now, the Decepticons standing outside the door were still wondering what was going on, and why Soundwave was allowed in but they weren't.

"Um, I think Megatron might be broken," Skywarp whispered.

"Shut up," said Starscream, pressing his audio to the door. "Soundwave is _such _a kiss-up."

"Oh, and you _aren_'_t_?" Thundercracker quipped.

"Our sparkling's time of arrival is near," said Soundwave, on the other side of the door.

"The end is near!" Rumble echoed.

"Almost there!" Frenzy added.

Megatron's body was practically doing the work for him. Listening to the minicons acting like his cheerleaders; tightly squeezing Soundwave's hand (but miraculously not breaking it); groaning, shouting and moaning (making noise helped)…actually, Megatron had never felt anything like it, bringing a brand-new sparkling into the world. For their part, Soundwave and the minicons were honored to be there to help him give birth, and they were excited to meet the sparkling.

_After all_, _it_'_s mine too_, Soundwave thought. _And it_'_s the minicons_' _new brother or sister_.

Frenzy ran up and gave Megatron's head an impromptu hug, then dashed back down to wait for the sparkling. On the next big push, Megatron felt his first stab of real pain in a long time.

"That's it!" Rumble cried.

"What's it?" Megatron grunted.

"The sparkling," said Rumble. "Well—it's gone now."

"Gone?" said Megatron. "What do you mean, _gone_?"

"It went back inside." The minicon shrugged. "I guess."

This caused Megatron to let out a groan of frustration, which was followed by another contraction—another push—and another sighting of the sparkling, which apparently just dipped back inside…again. And again.

"No PROGRESS!" Megatron hollered. This was _beyond _annoying.

"Correction: progress is being made." Soundwave hated to correct Megatron, but this was purely factual. Megatron just had to keep pushing and be patient. Of course, how easy could _that _possibly be? So he dared not mention the part about being patient; instead he just told Megatron that for every push he would be rewarded tenfold.

"I-I know," Megatron admitted, leaning back and closing his eyes, trying to convince himself to push really, really hard, which he did at first but then remembered what Soundwave told him earlier—if he felt like doing something, he should do it. So once he fell back into his natural rhythm, eventually all four of them got to experience the crowning of a sparkling.

Soundwave and his minicons knew it because they saw it. Megatron knew it because this time the burning didn't go away. Now his free hand was balled into a fist, his teeth clenched together again, his eyes shut tight as can be. When it just got worse, he couldn't help but cry out in anguish.

"I am aware there is discomfort," said Soundwave, knowing exactly what Megatron was feeling. The top of the sparkling's head was slowly but steadily beginning to emerge in its two-steps-forward-one-step-back motion as the contractions helped push it out. The head hurt one's opening something awful, and Megatron looked desperate. Soundwave felt his hand getting squeezed a little tighter, but he told Megatron to keep pushing anyway.

"Primus, this slagging BURNS!" Megatron hollered.

"The sparkling is crowning." Soundwave feared that he would lose his poker face and reveal how he felt—excited, worried, loving, determined to help his sparkling enter the world.

"I DON'T CARE!" Megatron didn't care about _anything_. This was surreal. In fact, he barely noticed when he fell backwards and landed flat on the floor. Soundwave quickly lifted him up and then used his hands (even the broken one) to support what he could see of the little sparkling's head.

Before, noise had been something Megatron had been trying to avoid. After all…what would the others think? But being vocal, he had learned, was just helping him push. That was all he had to do, just keep pushing. Ignore the burning. Just push. It HAD to come out. Megatron felt like his hips were going to fall off with the pressure his son or daughter gave him with each contraction; the already-intense need to push had become even more compelling. With the strong pushes given by Megatron, it almost split his opening to breaking point. Soundwave had torn with Ravage and he didn't want the same thing to happen to Megatron.

"Decrease effort, decrease effort," Soundwave was saying, and the minicons were by now telling him to back off, but Megatron wasn't listening; the desire to push the sparkling out was so strong that it felt like someone was _pulling _it out of him. Pushing was almost impossible to resist now, but Soundwave was repeating, "Decrease effort! Decrease effort!"

"Soundwave," Megatron choked out. "Is it really…?"

"Is it really what?" Rumble sounded confused, but Soundwave nodded gently and told Megatron to see for himself. When Megatron's hand touched the top of his sparkling's head for the first time, he closed his eyes and gave his first peaceful smile in ages as Soundwave just held him for a minute.

**TO BE CONTINUED…**


	3. Chapter 3

Still in Soundwave's arms, Megatron gasped and clenched his fangs together. Soundwave let him go and continued to oversee the birth. Megatron couldn't help but push even harder. So what if it was excruciating? This was his sparkling and he was going to deliver it. As he brought himself back into his familiar swing, the hard, strong pushes began to feel amazing again.

"Slow down!" Rumble told Megatron, grabbing his arm. "You wouldn't wanna hurt anythin' now, would ya?"

Megatron's response was to squeeze Rumble tightly in his fist, causing the minicon to cry out in pain. Soundwave couldn't help him, as he was too busy focusing on the sparkling itself, trying to guide it out without hurting it or the mech who was delivering it. Truth be told, he had never performed this _exact _procedure before, but he was used to working with machines and carrying out delicate tasks, and, having had so many sparklings himself, he knew how these things worked.

Soundwave remembered _his _first birth—Laserbeak. That hadn't been so hard, because eggs were easier to make than sparklings. Waiting for it to hatch almost drove him nuts, but it was worth it, seeing a baby chick using its beak to peck out of the egg, so trusting, letting his new caretaker hold him on his finger. This inspired Soundwave to give his first live birth—Ravage—about a year later. Ravage had been quite painful, and having to be stitched up afterwards had not been fun, but what Soundwave got in return, another cassette to call his own, was all he needed.

It was now time for Megatron to push a little more gently and relax, so as to let the little thing emerge gradually, but that wasn't exactly easy on him. The pushy feeling was so strong by now that he had to use every shred of his willpower, along with plenty of encouragement from Soundwave and the minicons, to counter it. And he didn't _want _to stop pushing. It hurt too much to stop or even slow down.

"Breathe, breathe," Soundwave was repeating, and when that didn't work, "Blow."

"I thought you said—do what feels right!" This combination was horrible. There was still an urge to push yet every time he did so, the acute pain got even more unbearable. Worse of all, Soundwave was telling Megatron that it wasn't the time to push. Well, he'd better have a slagging good reason!

"This is the widest point of circumference," Soundwave was trying to explain, making a sort of diagram with his hands.

"One push too hard, and you're going to need stitches," Rumble clarified.

Megatron was made to do a lot of panting and blowing, almost to the point of hyperventilation, crying out in frustration as Soundwave stayed on his knees, focusing intensely on the sparkling in between Megatron's legs, reminding him to still push on the contractions but GENTLY. Megatron just felt dizzy.

"I-I…" Megatron was trying to talk, but the ability to speak had long since abandoned him.

"Push, just a little," Soundwave repeated. Megatron tried to obey, the rational part of his mind knowing that Soundwave was right, pushing gently when he felt another sharp tightening in his abdomen, even though his body was begging him to just go nuts and push as hard as he could. Finally, the burning faded when the sparkling's chin emerged, and on the next push, Megatron put in every bit of his effort.

"Soundwave…" said Megatron quietly. The urge was coming again…but when he obeyed, it began to burn again, and worse, he felt no progress.

"The shoulders." Soundwave realized that the sparkling was turned on its side, and that the shoulders, already bulky, were stuck fast.

"PUSH!" Rumble yelled at the top of his lungs.

Not this again! The shoulders were probably square, like Megatron's, and of course they were made of tough metal, which stung and pinched and brought on more raw energon. Even with strong pushes, hardly anything happened, and it was beginning to make Megatron feel helpless.

"I can't do it," he mumbled.

Rumble looked a little horrified. "What are ya, a quitter?"

"Just push a little bit more and it'll be out," Frenzy begged.

"I-I said I can't," Megatron groaned. "It's STUCK!"

This normally would have gotten him killed, but Soundwave (to everyone's surprise) slapped Megatron and yelled, "PUSH!"

"I know." Putting his chin to his chest and moaning, Megatron seized the next contraction and pushed even though he didn't know if he was even getting anywhere and probably the only thing this sparkling was doing was causing him misery.

Soundwave quickly readjusted Megatron against the wall and had him spread his legs further apart, telling him to please just relax and keep pushing. The blue mech took a deep breath, reached inside and gently grabbed his son/daughter's arms, turning the sparkling on its front rather than the side, pulling a little but not yanking, while Megatron continued to push. With some loud yelling, raw energon, and exertion, Megatron finally managed to push the sparkling out to its chest. As the sparkling was kind of…blocky, it still wasn't exactly easy, but at least it wasn't stuck halfway inside of him anymore. Megatron considered that to be progress.

"The sparkling bears a strong resemblance to you, my Lord," said Soundwave.

"Oh—oh my—" panted Megatron, hardly able to talk. From what Soundwave could tell, the sparkling would be out in around two or three big pushes. It was such a strange combination—the feeling of being painfully stretched yet gloriously pushing, repetitive and relentless, leaning against the wall with his legs spread and his fingers digging into the floor, feeling, literally, the sparkling's progress as it moved out. It was just a combination of so many feelings, and that was what made it feel so incredible.

"It will soon be over," Soundwave coaxed him. "Estimation of remaining time: 3.2 minutes."

Megatron still wanted to give a giant push. So bad, SO BAD, please…what could only be described as a howl left his mouth as he bore down _again_, the minicons still crowding him, Soundwave's hands still on his knees.

"Oh dear Primus, it's—it's coming out…" Megatron bit his lip as he felt the sparkling continue to emerge. It was uncomfortable because his contractions brought great pressure very low down, and not only was he stretched to the limit but now it was like he had almost no control over this; he could only cry out at the sensation and obey. Tears began to sting his eyes as his lip began to bleed; he howled out not only because of the pain but because another unbearable demand to push seized him. But then again, he felt worse if he _didn_'_t _push. So maybe this was for the better…

Soundwave kept his hands on Megatron's knees, keeping his legs far apart enough that he could see the sparkling and make sure everything was still going all right. This way was also easier on Megatron. So far, the Decepticon leader's energy signal was fine, and the sparkling's was just getting stronger. There would only be a problem if it was growing fainter.

"I am picking up a strong energy signal," said Soundwave.

Every one of Megatron's pain sensors was telling him that Soundwave was right. On the next contraction he pushed again, reminding himself that very, very soon, this little guy (or girl) would be out. Soundwave couldn't help but admire him. Megatron was being brave, paying more attention to the goal than the pain as he pressed his chin to his chest, grabbed Soundwave's hand, clenched his teeth and pushed again. Again, the horribly blocky sparkling caused him discomfort, but Megatron knew that progress had been made, and it felt quite empowering.

"I'm pickin' up the signal now too," said Rumble. "It won't be long now!"

"You're doin' great!" said Frenzy enthusiastically.

"ONE more push," said Soundwave. Excitement was building up inside of him; he had always wanted to have a big family, and no matter how many sparklings he had, all of them were precious to him. Whether it was staying behind when retreating to wait for them to catch up or reading them bedtime stories or even just giving Ravage an affectionate stroke on the head, Soundwave's main purpose in life (besides being a Decepticon) was being Daddy Soundwave to his cassettes.

Megatron, as he prepared for the birth of his sparkling, reminded himself that yes, soon he would be holding his new son or daughter in his arms. And all he could do now was picture the birth in his mind.

The sparkling had ceased to be an empty frame—by now, gigabytes (well, terabytes, actually) of programming were pouring into its developed frame, supplying every bit of its body with CNA code. Most of it went to the sparkling's brain, but it also filled his body with color, gave him the power to live and eventually think for himself—to become more than just a machine, in other words. Previously, this small but extremely powerful microchip had been stored in Megatron's brain, while the frame was in his chassis/stomach area, but now the sparkling had his own brain, his own body, and a fair amount of binary code.

Megatron couldn't even see the sparkling and yet he liked the sight of it in his mind. All he felt now was a warm, relaxing feeling as, with a rush of lubricant, the young sparkling came into the world…

"IT'S OUT! IT'S OUT!" Rumble smacked his brother aside to climb up on Soundwave's arm, but Frenzy hit him back, and the two minicons started fighting. Soundwave ignored them and quickly caught the energon-coated, wet sparkling. The minicons hovered around, trying to get themselves a good view of him. The afterbirth slid out, messy but painless, as Soundwave wet a towel and began to clean the sparkling off. Finally, Soundwave picked up their last clean towel, swaddled the little thing in it to keep him warm and comfortable, and handed him to Megatron.

"Lord Megatron," said Soundwave respectfully. "You have a son."

"Can ya shut him up?!" Rumble hollered, hands over his audios. "I can hardly hear myself think!"

"My son," Megatron repeated, ignoring Rumble and holding the sparkling a little closer. "My wonderful son."

The sparkling was mostly blue, but he had a black pelvis, hands and shins, and his frame looked a lot like Megatron's—in fact, they had the exact same arms, except the sparkling's were blue instead of gray. Although he was born with Soundwave's visor, he unmistakably had Megatron's mouth, nose, and bucket-shaped head. The crying was a little loud, but Megatron was pretty sure sparklings were _supposed _to cry like that.

There was a big mess but no tearing, just abrasion. Soundwave was thankful for that. Later on he'd help Megatron get a bath and he would clean up Megatron's suite somehow, or else the minicons would do it. But for now, he wanted to spend some quality time with his new family member. Part of Megatron was still sore, but mostly he was focused on his little sparkling. Soundwave sent Frenzy to put the towels in the wash and get a bottle, and Rumble asked, "So…what's his name gonna be?"

"I have an idea," said Megatron. "How about…Sound Rage?"

Rumble did a thumbs-down, probably just to be difficult, but Soundwave nodded. It had part of his name in it, and he knew "Rage" would be perfectly fine with Megatron. They could call him "Ragey" for short…well, maybe not.

Megatron realized, as he kissed the tiny blue helmet that looked otherwise just like his, that he couldn't believe all those things he'd been thinking before. Both he and Soundwave had wanted a sparkling so badly, and then Megatron was willing to give up just because the birth hurt a little? Megatron decided that was the most ridiculous thought he'd ever had. Everybody had been telling him, don't give up, it will all be worth it. And he hadn't believed them for a second. But now he realized that they were all, well…_right_, after all.

Soundwave reached over and let Sound Rage grab his finger. By now, he had stopped crying, and when Soundwave tried to use his other hand (the broken one) to stroke Sound Rage's head, his hand fell right off.

"Did I really break your hand?" Megatron laughed. "I guess I don't know my own strength."

Soundwave shrugged and gave a slight nod.

Unfortunately, that was when the three jets and a few other Decepticons burst into the room, probably drawn by the sound of crying. They ruined the moment completely. Megatron had forgotten that the door to his suite was unlocked—and now everybody was in his room. When they got there, they stared at the scene in front of them in shock.

"Woah, is that a _sparkling_?" Skywarp asked, eyes widening.

"Of _course _it's a sparkling," said Starscream disparagingly. "Didn't you hear it crying earlier?"

"Why didn't you tell us your sparkling was here?" Thundercracker asked.

"Because it is no business of yours," Megatron said hotly, holding the sparkling tighter and feeling a little self-conscious, all too aware of everybody's stares. "Now leave and let the sparkling be alone with his parents."

"This is me leaving," said Skywarp hurriedly, bolting out the door, prompting the others to follow him.

Once they were gone, Soundwave used his remaining hand to stroke the sparkling's head, then told Megatron that he really had done a fantastic job.

"Let's put it this way, Soundwave," said Megatron. "If we ever have any more sparklings, YOU will be having the contractions."

"As you command, Lord Megatron," Soundwave replied.

"I wish we could see what he transforms into," said Megatron. "But he won't listen if we tell him to do it, will he?"

So Megatron and Soundwave just played with Sound Rage while waiting for Frenzy to come back. Soundwave insisted that playing with him would stimulate his mind, which could also prompt him to transform and show them his alt. mode. To their great joy, he finally did—the little sparkling was a cassette, similar to Soundwave's minicons. Part of Megatron was disappointed that he wasn't a gun, but he was mostly happy about having a new son in the first place…just like he had wanted for so long. They both had.

Soon after, Frenzy returned with a bottle, and Sound Rage got his first meal. Once he'd finished all the sparkling formula, he fell peacefully into stasis…and so did Megatron, in fact, both of them collapsing onto Soundwave. Rumble laughed, and Frenzy took the empty bottle back to the kitchen, but Soundwave stayed right there with Megatron and Sound Rage. Never would he abandon his sleeping family…even if he had to stay there all night.

-the end-


End file.
